


The swan prince

by ThoughtfulObserver



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Drama, M/M, nevermore!Reaper, raven!Gabriel, swan!Jack, swanlake - freeform, swanlake!au, witch!Amélie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-15
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-08-09 00:18:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7779250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThoughtfulObserver/pseuds/ThoughtfulObserver
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of two star-crossed lovers.</p><p>OR</p><p>"The sappy swanlake!AU no one ever asked for."</p>
            </blockquote>





	The swan prince

“What is wrong _mon roi_? Usually the prospect of the upcoming Black Moon would have you a little less disgruntled for weeks in advance, yet here you stand; more grim than ever although the big gala will be held tomorrow.” The witch mocked him, a small grin on her lips.

Gabriel turned around to look at her, the feathers at the end of his cape brushing the floor as purple flames flared through the eyes of his mask. “ _Things change._ ” He all but growled, his voice husky and distorted, though Amélie had stopped feeling intimidated by him long ago.

She hummed knowingly, as if she _understood_ anything and it was enough to make him want to claw out her eyes, but he was better than that. He could control himself.

“You know..” She began with a click of her tongue, her eyes glancing over at the sinking sun. “I always wonder where you fly to.”

He made a step towards her, already reaching out with his hand in order to grab her throat and choke her, but then he felt it; the last sunbeams dissolved, leaving only the darkness of the night. And just like every night it tore at his flesh and like every night he tried to fight it, only to succumb to the shadows over and over again. A soundless scream left his lips as his body dissolved into black smoke before it rearranged itself in the form of a raven.

He cawed enraged, sharp claws trying to scratch his tormentor, but a flick of her wrist was enough to shove him away. The raven let out a yelp, frantically flapping his black wings to regain balance, then he turned to fly off into the night. He knew he couldn't harm her and he had more important things to do than to waste his energy trying.

He effortlessly ascended into the night's sky, flying far above the land that should belong to him – he was the king after all. The thought left a bitter taste in his maw.

Years ago his father had invaded this country and for a while all seemed good. His father had ruled with grace and justice and even though they had come as strangers the folk accepted them as their new leaders.

But then, one fateful day that wicked enchantress set foot into the palace. Amélie was a woman of unmatched beauty and the soft spoken spells she weaved around his father were as impressive and dangerous as a spider's web. Gabriel had warned his father, but he wouldn't listen and soon there were rumors of a wedding soon to be held.

Even to this day Gabriel wasn't sure, whether the untimely decease of his father was a blessing or not, but it definitely disrupted Amélie's plan. He had sensed her distress, she very well knew that he would dispose of her as soon as he could, now that he was in charge, but she beat him to it and turned him into this.. this _thing_. Even after all these years he still had no words for what he had become. A wraith of sorts, the shadow of a man and every night, when the sun set he was forced to turn into a raven. It was painful and humiliating and it also gave the witch _control_ over him. He was no king, but a puppet.

Of course the curse could be broken, every curse could, but it would take a true love's kiss and who could ever love a creature like him?

It was futile to ponder about, so he didn't.

He had come to terms with his life since a long time and by now he was able to actually enjoy the freedom and peace his raven form brought him. Gabriel had spend night after night exploring his kingdom from high above and one night he had even found something that filled his heart with warmth.

Deep in the dark forest south of the capital lay the ruin of an old castle. It was long forgotten, but the skeleton of stone embraced a beautiful lake that was home to a bevy of swans. The surrounding nature, the glistening moonlight that was reflected by the water - it was beauteous, but it all simply faded away compared to whom he called the 'swan prince'.

He was clad in flawless, white robes, his hair short and the color of gold and his voice smoother than silk. Every night he would sit at the edge of the lake, his feet in the water and would sing beautiful ballads in a language Gabriel couldn't understand, though he felt every foreign syllable as it touched his heart. It had taken him a few nights of watching the mysterious figure until he realized that the songs he sang always carried a peculiar melancholy with them – a sorrow that felt so much like his own.

Of course Gabriel never showed himself to the man, he would always just settle down on the branch of a nearby tree, hidden in the shadows to not interrupt, because he loved to listen to the soft voice and he didn't want it to stop.

One night he had been foolish though. His heart had ached as the swan prince sang a song heavy from his despair and loneliness and when the urge to comfort the stranger had overwhelmed him, Gabriel had cried out in an attempt to sing, to tell the man that he was not alone. The croak that left his throat was skew and untuneful, startling the swans who would gather around their prince, making them fly up into the sky and when the turmoil had settled down again, the beautiful swan prince was gone and Gabriel had been left alone, mourning his loss.

Luckily the prince had returned the following night, but it had taught Gabriel to not show himself again, even if it hurt.

This night was no different. He heard the song of the swan prince, carried off by the wind and let himself be guided to the moonlit lake by it. Gabriel silently settled down on a branch from where he could see the profile of the singing stranger. As always the swans of the lake gathered in the water in front of him. However this time something bothered the raven and he couldn't find himself to enjoy the beautiful singing as he would normally do. He pondered about it and soon it dawned on him that it was because of Amélie's words.

Tomorrow night would be the night of the black moon – the only night of the year during which Gabriel would remain in his human form. Usually the cursed king would spend the night dancing and celebrating, but this year he would rather turn into a raven, because he didn't want to miss a night with the swan prince. He wished he could tell him, invite him to the gala so they could dance together, pretend for a night that Gabriel was human, but it was impossible and so Gabriel left the swan lake earlier than most nights.

 

And so he grew more bitter as time passed and when the gala started and the guests began celebrating in his castle's garden he could only watch from his balcony, growling in agony. He would have liked to be left alone, but of course Amélie had to come to him, mocking him, making everything even worse just like she always did.

“Do you even know the true meaning behind the black moon?” She asked as she put her arms around his waist, pressing her chest against his back, whispering into his ear. “Your family isn't from here and it seems you always had some kind of.. misconception regarding this night. You probably think it is a night celebrating two lovers and while that it true there is a much more.. tragic story behind it.”

Gabriel took a deep breath. Her perfume was bittersweet and way to strong, it made him feel nauseous.

“It's said that once there were two lovers – and their love for each other was by far the most beautiful thing in the world, but a powerful wizard was jealous of their love and turned them into the sun and the moon and ever since then they had to chase each other through the sky, yet they were never able to reach one another. They lived like that for hundreds of years until a fairy found out about their fate and felt pity for them. She wanted to reunite the lovers, but her magic wasn't strong enough to break the wizard's spell and so she could only turn them back to humans once every year. That's the night where the sky is void of sun and moon alike, that's the night of the black moon we celebrate tonight. It's a sad story, isn't it? Of two star-crossed lovers, never able to be together. It does remind me of you, though I guess it is better to love and be loved in pain, then to never feel love at all, isn't it?” She laughed it him, before letting him go, turning to join the celebrating crowd, leaving Gabriel feeling empty inside.

He stayed like that for the longest time, when he suddenly heard some sort of unrest. The raven king looked down at the crowd that had gathered in his garden and found some of them gasping, pointing fingers at someone who had just arrived, soft words being whispered to one another. Apparently there was someone they haven't seen before.

An unfamiliar feeling of hope seized Gabriel's heart as he tried to catch a glimpse at the mysterious figure and when more and more people started to surround the new guest he let out an annoyed growl and rushed down the stairs to see for himself.

“Who is there?” He demanded to know, his dark voice thundering through the night, making everyone stop in their tracks to look at him – shock and fear evident in their faces. Those that blocked his sight slowly moved out of the way, bowing their heads politely reviling to Gabriel the most beautiful thing he had ever laid his eyes upon.

It was none other than the swan prince himself. He wore a dazzling white suit with swan feathers etched to his shoulders and waist and for the very first time Gabriel could actually look him into the eyes.

 _They are blue._ He thought and it was the only thought that passed his mind as he stared at the soft smile of his prince.

The next thing he knew was that he moved towards him, hand reaching out for him as the man bowed down.

“ _May I ask.._ ” He croaked, his voice almost failing him. “ _.. for this dance?_ ”

The swan prince just put his head back, letting out a laugh that sounded like a chime. He smiled at Gabriel, took his hand and nodded. “It would be my pleasure.”

And then they danced.

For the rest of the night all Gabriel could hear was the sound of laughter and all he saw was the brilliant blue of a pair of eyes that lit up every time the swan prince smiled and for the first time in forever Gabriel felt _alive_. It was like the blonde was his own, personal sun that he had lost long ago, that tonight came back in all it's glory, in all it's beauty and Gabriel couldn't help but smile beneath his mask.

The swan prince leaned against his chest, humming to the tunes of the music that was played before he looked up at Gabriel with an almost amused expression on his face. “Why does it feel like we have met before?” He asked curiously, his hand carefully brushing against Gabriel's masked cheek. “Maybe once in a dream.” He answered, leaning into the gentle touch. The swan prince nodded, agreeing silently then his other hand moved up to Gabriel's mask and the king let his prince take it of carefully.

Gabriel very well knew that while the swan prince was blindingly beautiful he himself looked like a hideous monster. His skin had always been a darker tone, but ever since Amélie had cursed him, ashen gray patches that emitted thin veils of black smoke mottled his skin and his eyes had turned black with hellish purple flames burning deep inside them. Yet the other didn't seem to care, he neither flinched nor hesitated instead he mumbled something that Gabriel thought might have been ' _beautiful_ ' and leaned in closer to kiss the cursed king.

But then, suddenly, just before their lips touched the swan prince pulled away, his face riddled with shock and fear. Gabriel's eyes snapped open, the warmth he had felt just moments ago gone in the blink of an eye. The other looked around in panic, letting go of Gabriel, turning to run away.

“ _I have to leave._ ” He exclaimed in haste, but Gabriel grabbed his wrists, trying to hold him back, because he _couldn't loose him_.

“No. Don't..! I-.. _please_..!”

“ _I have to go._ ” The swan prince insisted, his eyes darting back to Gabriel for a brief moment, a pained expression distorting his beautiful features, he muttered a sorry, shook of Gabriel's hands and ran away as fast as he could.

The king followed, crying out in pain as his sunshine left him again and after he had lost track of the swan prince in the dense woods he fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face.

He heard a faint rustle in the bushes behind him and looked up, but this time all his hopes were shattered as Amélie stepped out of the darkness, walking over to him to pat his head.

“What a tragedy.” She simply said, her smile clear in her voice. “But did you really think anyone could ever love you?”

 

The feeling of emptiness wouldn't leave Gabriel for days to come. Most of the time he would just stand on his balcony, looking off into the distance, silent and motionless. Even Amélie's mocking wouldn't make him feel again. There was no anger, no hatred, not even sorrow – just emptiness, yet it weighted him down so much that every night, when he tried to fly up into the sky he would come crashing down back to earth.

It became so hard to endure that he would do _anything_ to make it stop and so he decided to ask the witch herself.

At first she had laughed at him, but then she had wrapped her arms around his shoulders and her hands had rubbed soothing circles across his back. He found himself hugging her back, begging her to end whatever was plaguing him. To his surprise she complied.

“Go and hunt down the biggest and most beautiful swan you can find.” He heard her whisper, her voice poisoning his mind with each word she spoke. “Bring it to me, I will make a crown out of it's feathers that you can give to your prince. Most certainly he will accept your gift and come back to you.”

Blinded by sorrow and sinister spells he agreed and headed out that same day.

He knew exactly where he would find the most beautiful swan in the whole kingdom and so he made his way to the swan lake, deep in the forest south of the capital.

The journey took him much longer, than he was used to since he wasn't flying and so he arrived at the lake as dusk was falling rapidly already. Gabriel quickly dismounted and readied bow and arrow. He slowly approached the lake and immediately spotted the bevy of swans, swimming in the calm water. His glance roamed to the shore of the lake as he tried to spot the swan prince and when he couldn't find him his heart clenched together. Taking a deep breath he tried to calm his nerves, focusing on the task at hand.

The swans were all equally beautiful and for a moment Gabriel hesitated, not knowing which one he should shoot, but then suddenly they all flew up into the sky – all but one.

The remaining swan was far more beautiful than the others, it's long feather's dazzling white. It looked right into Gabriel's eyes and approached him slowly, unless the other's it was calm and graceful and Gabriel stared at it, mesmerized.. then he shot.

The swan rose up with a heartrending cry, the arrow firmly lodged in it's chest, it's giant wings flailing around in panic before all strength left it and it slumped back into the water.

Gabriel stood still.

 _Just in time._ He thought as he saw the sun sinking.

Quickly he rushed into the water, wanting to retrieve his prize before he turned back into a raven, but when he approached the place the swan had fallen all he saw was the lifeless body of the swan prince floating in the bloodied water.

His heart shattered and he immediately reached out, pulling the other to the surface and cradling him in his arms. His stomach turned as he saw his arrow in his lovers chest and he let out a pained cry, cupping the other's pale cheek, begging for him not to leave.

A moment later blue eyes fluttered open and lips that had lost their color formed into a smile. Gabriel leaned his forehead against the other's and grid his teeth as he felt a gentle kiss being pressed against his lips.

 

After that night he never turned back into a raven ever again.

 


End file.
